RBCT Chapter 8 Preparing the Dishes
Chapter 8 Preparing the Dishes
After Lu Hua and the others left, Lu Yuan called Wei Yinghong and Lu Changming to the restaurant.
In his plan, the whole family must be involved in the initial stage.
It's not that we can't find waiters, but that the people we do hire certainly won't care about the restaurant as much as family members do.
If we can earn money at the restaurant near our home, my parents won't have to be farmers toiling in the fields anymore.
Moreover, Wei Yinghong has a special skill that is crucial for tomorrow's opening.
That's fried dough sticks!
Fried dough cakes, also known as "youxiang" by people in northern China, are round and plump, golden in color, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They have no filling and are the ultimate release of wheat flavor.
Although Wei Yinghong's cooking skills are average, her ability to fry dough sticks is absolutely superb!
People in northern China like to fry dough cakes, steamed buns, fruit platters, and other pastries during festivals. Wei Yinghong personally makes most of the pastries for the Lu family, while her aunts can only help out.
In his previous life, after Lu Yuan achieved great success, he wanted to replicate his mother's exquisite fried dough cakes, but he could never replicate them.
His mother had already passed away by then, and this became a significant regret in his heart.
The earthen stove outside the restaurant was prepared for Wei Yinghong.
When the oil is heated, the aroma will fill the air, and passersby will definitely stop to take a look.
After understanding Lu Yuan's meaning, Wei Yinghong felt relieved. She was very confident in her fried dough stick skills.
"Dad, you also have a task." Lu Yuan then turned his gaze to Lu Changming.
"Me?" Lu Changming was clearly surprised.
"Did you notice those white boxes on the ground outside the restaurant?"
Lu Changming nodded.
"That's called a parking space. In the city, people park their cars in parking spaces. Your job is to get the diners to park their cars in the parking spaces."
"Understood." Lu Changming nodded again, crossing his legs as he pondered.
In the past, when we arrived at the restaurant, the cars that came to eat were always parked haphazardly, making it look messy and even blocking the entrance.
If parking spaces are properly regulated, passing vehicles will perceive the restaurant as more professional, which will subtly enhance its image.
After all the tasks were arranged, Wei Yinghong began to prepare the dough for frying the dough cakes in advance.
The dough for frying dough cakes needs to ferment overnight, and there are many complicated steps involved.
To make the fried dough sticks more fragrant, Wei Yinghong added honey and milk powder.
From flour to dough, Lu Yuan watched intently, as if he were learning to do something like an adult for the first time, with utmost seriousness.
But he still hadn't discovered the secret to his mother's delicious fried dough cakes; at least in the dough-making step, he could obviously do it better.
Before going to bed that night, there was a sudden, deep knocking on the door. Lu Yuan opened the door, and Lu Jie squeezed in.
"Xiao Yuan, can I stay at your place tonight? Is Lu Hua really going to beat me up?"
Lu Yuan smiled and nodded, jokingly asking, "Brother Jie, did you go back and tease Brother Hua again?"
"What do you mean by a run on the bank? I'm just telling the truth!" Lu Jie casually lifted the curtain and entered the room, pouring himself a glass of water.
"He went back and kept saying he wanted to learn to cook from you. I told him he was just imitating others poorly; he'd only imitate what others do. Then he chased after me trying to beat me up!"
Lu Yuan patted him on the shoulder and said with emotion, "If you get beaten up, it's really not unfair at all."
That night, Lu Jie stayed in Lu Yuan's room. Anyway, they had lived next door to each other since they were little, so they were used to it.
At 4 a.m., the gate to the courtyard was being knocked on loudly.
Lu Yuan had already washed up and was waiting. When he opened the door, sure enough, it was his unconventional uncle, wearing a studded denim jacket and carrying two lambs on his back.
"It's so far, why are you confused again? This restaurant was perfectly fine when it was closed, why did you open it again?"
Lu Yuan found these words strange and almost fell into their trap. He then took the sheep and teased, "Uncle, do you want a beating from my mom or my grandpa?"
Upon hearing the names of these two devils, Wei Yingxiong trembled and waved his hand, saying, "I'm scared of you, okay? How do you plan to divide the sheep? Your uncle will take care of it for you!"
"No need." Lu Yuan shook his head indifferently, then threw the sheep onto the cutting board, picked up a butcher knife and stabbed it into the sheep's belly.
With swift and precise cuts, a sheep is neatly divided into forelegs, hind legs, ribs, brisket, neck, and other tender cuts.
Lu Yuan divided the ribs into two parts. One part, along with the hind leg and brisket, was soaked in cold water for two hours and then stewed in one pot.
The other part is chopped into small pieces and placed together with the foreleg as the main ingredient for stir-fried lamb.
Lu Yuan was very fast; in less than half an hour, he had clearly separated the two sheep.
The skill with which he performed the move left Wei Yingxiong speechless.
"Wow, you're quite the hidden talent! Since you're so outstanding, I can go home with peace of mind!"
Wei Yingxiong was just about to leave when Wei Yinghong blocked him at the door:
"Where are you going? You should stay at the shop and help out today; your nephew's matter is important!"
"Sister, I have something important to do!" Wei Yingxiong said with a troubled expression.
Wei Yinghong sneered, "What important business? A blind date?"
Wei Yingxiong shook his head.
Wei Yinghong snorted coldly: "Apart from blind dates and marriage, none of your things count as serious business!"
The Wei family only has one male heir, Wei Yingxiong, and they are counting on him to carry on the family line.
She ignored Wei Yingxiong's mournful appearance and took out the dough, kneading it again.
Last night, we only completed the first step. Before frying the dough, we still need to knead the eggs and sesame powder into the dough.
After watching Wei Yinghong complete her final preparations, Lu Yuan still couldn't find her trick and could only begin his own preparations.
Stir-fried lamb is the main dish of Xiao Lu's farmhouse cuisine, but the method of stir-frying first and then stewing is very time-consuming.
If we wait for customers to order before we start cooking, it will take at least an hour to serve the food, and nobody wants to wait that long.
So before that, Lu Yuan needed to "pre-prepare" the food in advance—fry the meat first, so that it would only take 10 minutes from ordering to serving.
After all the preparations were completed, Lu Yuan began to cook lunch for everyone.
Lu Yuan planned to use the freshly cut tender meat to make a stir-fried lamb dish and a hot and sour shredded potato dish to go with rice. The characteristic of these two dishes is that they are very quick and can be done in 20 minutes.
The recipe for stir-fried mutton is very simple. Slice the mutton thinly and serve it with green peppers, wood ear mushrooms, glass noodles, onions, and garlic sprouts.
Stir-fry over high heat, first add the lamb, and then add the side dishes one by one after it changes color. The seasoning only requires chili powder, salt, and soy sauce. It tests your control of the heat and the freshness of the ingredients.
After Lu Yuan finished cooking, Lu Ying arrived at the store with Lu Xue in one hand and a bag of clothes in the other. Lu Jie also came over, still sleepy-eyed, following the aroma.
The rich, smoky aroma of the stir-fried mutton instantly whetted everyone's appetite, and the hunger pangs of the night before suddenly struck, filling the air with rumbling stomachs.
My uncle hadn't tried the stir-fried lamb and lamb noodles from a few days ago, so he didn't know how potent Lu Yuan's cooking was now.
After he picked up his chopsticks, took a bite, and put it in his mouth, his eyes lit up.
The savory aroma of the mutton is enhanced by the fresh fragrance of onions, garlic sprouts, and green peppers, creating a unique and complex flavor.
My uncle was thoroughly enjoying his meal. His naturally curly hair, combined with his thin face, made his eyes appear exceptionally large, and his expressions were quite exaggerated.
Wei Yinghong had just picked up her bowl when she put it down again, then slapped her uncle on the shoulder: "What's wrong with you? Hurry up and eat, the guests will be coming soon!"